
Internal documents revealed the media company required local news anchors across the country to read scripted segments attacking 'fake news' media. Anchors faced termination for refusing.
“Our promotional campaigns simply remind viewers of our commitment to unbiased reporting”
From “crazy” to confirmed
The Claim Is Made
This is the moment they called it crazy.
When you turn on your local news broadcast in America, you generally expect to hear reporting tailored to your community. What you may not realize is that a single corporation controls nearly 200 television stations across the country—and in 2018, evidence emerged showing it was using that power to dictate what anchors said on air.
Sinclair Broadcast Group is the largest television station owner in the United States. In March 2018, video clips surfaced showing anchors from dozens of Sinclair-owned stations reading nearly identical scripts. The segments attacked what they called "fake news" and warned viewers about "biased stories from other media outlets." Many of these scripts contained explicitly pro-Trump messaging and framing consistent with the president's rhetoric against mainstream media.
The clips were compiled by media critics and shared widely online, creating immediate pressure on the company. Local news anchors, often seen as trusted figures in their communities, suddenly appeared to be reading propaganda rather than reporting independently. The synchronized nature of the messaging made clear this wasn't coincidental—someone at corporate headquarters had written these scripts and required stations to air them.
Sinclair initially defended the practice as routine promotional content designed to protect local journalism's credibility. The company argued it was simply responding to legitimate concerns about media bias and that the scripts were optional guidance rather than mandatory directives. Some company executives suggested the controversy was being overblown by those hostile to conservative viewpoints.
However, internal documents and testimony from station managers told a different story. Former employees revealed that local anchors faced significant pressure to read the segments exactly as written. Those who refused or modified the scripts reportedly faced disciplinary action or termination threats. Email correspondence between corporate leadership and station managers confirmed these were not suggestions—they were requirements enforced through the company's performance evaluation system.
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The evidence demonstrated a systematic effort to use the reach of local news broadcasting to amplify particular political messaging. What made this especially consequential is that local news anchors remain among the most trusted sources of information for many Americans. By forcing these anchors to deliver corporate-approved narratives, Sinclair was leveraging that trust to distribute content that looked like local journalism but functioned as centralized propaganda.
This wasn't about editorial standards or quality control. The scripts specifically targeted "other media outlets" and promoted skepticism about established news organizations—a messaging strategy that directly benefited politicians attacking press freedom. Sinclair had effectively turned local news anchors into delivery mechanisms for political talking points.
The verification of this claim matters because it exposed a vulnerability in American media infrastructure. A single large corporation, operating mostly outside public attention, could coordinate messaging across nearly a quarter of all local television stations. Citizens believing they were receiving diverse local reporting were actually receiving synchronized corporate directives.
The incident revealed that media consolidation isn't just about ownership concentration—it's about the ability to control narrative at scale. When a company can require hundreds of anchors to read identical scripts, it undermines the basic function of journalism as a diverse marketplace of ideas. The public trust in local news that once seemed rock-solid had been quietly weaponized by those who controlled the distribution infrastructure.
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